


Dangerous

by Augustus



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-05-23
Updated: 2009-05-23
Packaged: 2018-08-16 08:31:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8095207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Augustus/pseuds/Augustus
Summary: Rand discusses her concerns with Uhura. Set during "Charlie X".





	

"You said what?" Uhura gave her friend an incredulous look. The recreation room was unusually crowded for so early in the evening, and the clamour of conversation meant that she had to strain to hear Rand's soft tone, despite their close proximity. Even so, Uhura was all but certain that she hadn't misheard, as surprising as the words might be. 

"I told him to join us here," Rand admitted, her gaze fixed on the cards that covered the table between them, as though she were reluctant to meet Uhura's eyes. 

"I though he made you uncomfortable."

"He does." Rand looked up finally, her eyes conflicted. "He was trying so hard, though. I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He's so... earnest. So desperate to please me."

"He has a crush on you." There was a discernible note of amusement in Uhura's voice. Charlie seemed a little peculiar, certainly, but in this way, if not others, he was not so very different to many of the Enterprise's crew. 

Rand waved a hand dismissively, even as a faint blush coloured her cheeks. "He was bound to feel something toward the first woman he met."

"It's more than that." Uhura smiled, amused by Rand's show of modesty. "If you can captivate the captain and half the crew, then why not a silly boy?"

Normally, Rand would have responded to Uhura's light-hearted teasing in like, laughing as she asked, "only half?" or countering with a list of her friend's admirers. This time, however, she remained silent, her only response a slight downward flicker of her brows.

"Janice?"

Rand slid a lone card from the table, twirling it nervously between her fingers. When she spoke, her voice was so quiet that Uhura had to strain to hear it above the conversation of their crewmates. "I know it's silly, but he scares me a little."

The admission made something in Uhura's chest tighten momentarily, but she brushed the sensation away with a sunny smile. "He's just a boy." She kept her tone light, ignoring the sudden shadow of foreboding that nudged insistently at the front of her mind. 

Dropping the playing card, Rand reached across the table, her fingers closing around Uhura's hand instead. Her grasp was uncomfortably tight, but it was not the pressure that caused Uhura's breath to catch in her throat, not the shock of the sudden contact that warmed her cheeks. 

Rand's eyes were troubled when she finally spoke. "He's dangerous." 

Uhura shuddered, more from the darkness of her friend's expression than from the words themselves. "The captain won't allow him to get out of hand," she said, keeping her tone light and, hopefully, reassuring.

Rand nodded, smiling self-consciously as she dropped Uhura's hand. Her fingers trembled slightly, though, when she moved to gather the cards into a neat pile in the centre of the table. 

Discretely, Uhura moved her own hand out of Rand's reach, self-consciously smoothing her hair. Across the table, Rand's face had regained its usual appearance of serenity and, as Uhura watched, she smiled flirtatiously at a maintenance crewman on the other side of the room. Her own smile tightening, Uhura waited for Rand to resume their conversation but, when she spoke again, it was of everyday things. It seemed the moment had passed. 

By the time Charlie joined them, it was almost as though nothing had been said. Rand was kind, if not overly friendly, to him, her warm expression perfectly masking any remaining fears. Uhura could see the boy falling ever more deeply under Rand's spell with every glance or smile she allowed him and she couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy for the newcomer. 

Perhaps her friend was right. Perhaps the boy was dangerous. But Uhura knew, better than anyone, that Rand could be dangerous too.


End file.
